Broken Boulder so sad, her eyes; smiling dark eyes

@Vilkas

The nightmares had begun in earnest, as she began to recover the haziest memories of her time in the creek. Every feeling like it was real again--the icy water in her nose, the darkness closing over her head. She'd wake, trembling and panting, rolling over onto her side, only to fall into more disturbing visions. With a whimper, she'd accept her fate, waiting the night out until morning, when she'd leave the den.

She was short on sleep lately.

Some nights, like tonight, Lily gave up on her den. She slipped from Broken Boulder, into the cool of the evening, the breeze ruffling the dark hairs of her pelt. Yawning, she strode over to Star Rock, hopping up with a muffled sound against the stone and sprawling out, looking skyward.

She tried to remember the names of the stars Korei had taught her about, but had nothing; she'd never had a head for stars. Instead, she admired the way they looked, some clustered together, some spread so far apart--and yet still very bright, shining out boldly by themselves. Wispy clouds blew here and there, extinguishing some of the starlight.

Lily had been struggling to regain her good humor. So much of her attitude had come from her verbosity; without it, she was merely a pretty face, a kind soul. Utterly unremarkable, in the great scheme of things. Her way with words had set her apart, and helped her in her trade. She not only felt lost, she felt useless, and miserable with it.

She beat her dark tail against the stone in silent, impatient fury, sighing and resting her chin on her outstretched paws.

the wounds inflicted by the trespassing woman are healing but he suspects they will scar as he pauses to inspect the dark scab on his shoulder by the light of the moon. vilkas doesn't particularly mind, for what is a warrior without scars? but it is remembrance of her audacity that forces the cipher into extra patrols of his own free will. at night, while the pack slumbers vilkas likes to take to the borders. the nights are often cooler than the day when the sun heats the earth and beats down unforgivingly upon those caught outside of shaded areas. the borders is where he heads now as he cuts through the sanctuary's claimed territory he makes a detour from his intended path. vilkas often swings by lily's den, never seeking to wake her or even, truly, let her know he's there. he does it to check up on her, to assuage his own concern before he continues on towards the borders.

he makes this detour tonight and is met with unbridled surprise to find that she is not within her den but instead, a shadow among the shadows of night, presumably awake as her tail taps out an inaudible tempo of fury. "lily?" vilkas's voice is heavy with concern. her name may come out as an inquiry, holding an unspoken question but vilkas does not expect an answer. her silence remains and vilkas can only assume how frustrating it must be for her. "mind some company?" the firebrand inquires. the borders are important, yes, but for her the borders can and will wait.

The sound of the voice Lily most wanted to hear lifted her spirits, slightly, and she looked down at Vilkas, smiling. She gave him a shake of her head in response, hoping that he could see the gesture, though her dark fur blended too well against the black of night. She gestured further for him to join her on the rock, shifting over to give him more room and waiting for him to arrive.

In all her nightmares, there was one common thread--Vilkas. He and the unknown woman had saved her, had rescued her from the brink of death. She was already fond of him, but now, she owed him her life. What could she ever to do repay him? Her esteem for the man had grown tenfold, and he had become her protector, her savior, her friend.

Perhaps, with time, even more.

vilkas doesn't know what draws him to lily and accepts that he might never figure it out. perhaps he's not supposed to. it's a draw, subtle but strong like a moon swept up in the gravity of a planet and he offers no resistance to it. he thinks he sees her shake her head but it's hard to decipher — her nature given camouflage works well ( perhaps too well ) and he will not make any moves until he is absolutely certain he wouldn't be forcing his presence on her. she shifts on the rock and this movement he sees; and even if he wouldn't have he hears her move to make room for him. he climbs atop it and settles down beside her, lowering himself into a comfortable, sphinx-like position at her side.

it will be hard for him to read her body language in the dark of the night and he contemplates not saying anything at all. he might have been well-spoken but he still habitually shies away from verbal conversation. trusting words just isn't written into his code. so then why does he feel the urge to fill the silence with them? it's not uncomfortable. there isn't anyone in these wilds that vilkas feels more comfortable with then lily ( except for aela, of course but that is arguably different because she's his sister ). perhaps he seeks to offer her some sort of comfort, or encouragement but he's not a poetic beast and decides that, for the moment, words simply aren't needed.

instead, the firebrand tentatively reaches out with the intention of touching his muzzle to her cheek briefly, if she allows him.

She shot him a grin as he climbed onto the rock with her, huddling closer without hesitation. A pleased rumble bubbled in her throat as he pressed his nose to her cheek, her eyes closing for a brief moment before fluttering open again. She gave him a long, trusting look, tail sweeping more placidly across the stone now.

While the sun turned his pelt to fire, the moon did something different entirely, shimmering across it, each hair gleaming gold-silver. There were pinkish lines gone silver across his muzzle, too, and she let loose a gentle whine, running her nose along them for a brief instant before pulling back again. She hadn't noticed them before. Battle scars, and fresh ones, too.

He was handsome, devastatingly so, and she found herself lost hopelessly in his eyes, so green and glittering with stars. Lily pressed her face into the thick, plush fur lining his neck, feeling suddenly shy. She closed her eyes, a secret, silent smile on her face.

she allows his touch and even welcomes it with a rumble that verbalizes her delight. it's takes it as a good sign and a smile tugs at the corners of his lips as he turns his muzzle away, glimpsing skyward. he's never overly appreciative of the beauty of the night sky but he's a warrior and such poetic things are better left for those who could do them justice. still, it's a pretty sight ...though, not as pretty as the one beside him. lily discovers the fresh scars where the trespasser had sunk her teeth into his muzzle and he resists the urge to shiver as he feels her nose brush against the flesh there still sensitive; yet he makes a dismissive noise at her gentle whine. he doesn't want her to fuss over it. "what's a warrior without the scars to showcase his experiences?" he brushes it off.

he hadn't won that fight and the woman had gotten away. not unscathed of course, but the lost fight was still a sore spot for his pride. even so, vilkas knows that not all fights can be won and that he's meant to learn from his losses. so, he strives to. vilkas is drawn from his thoughts and blinks down at lily in surprise when he feels her press her face into the fur of his neck. his surprise quickly melts away into a small smile as h briefly touches his lips to the cusp of her velvety ear in response.

The worry didn't go away, but Lily did offer him a fleeting smile before she had buried her head in his neck, cuddling closer. Then she felt his lips on her ear, and a shiver rippled through her body, as if she was cold--but it was a warm summer's night, and her skin was suffused with heat. The same warmth in her stomach that Dirge had given her was here anew, and her shyness grew. . .but with it, curiosity.

She was, suddenly, very aware of him, of every drop of blood that pulsed through his veins, every hair on his pelt. She swallowed, arching her neck further, pressing her ear further toward his caresses. Her eyelids fluttered, eyes rolling slightly back in her head.

Lily lifted her muzzle, then, to preen at the fur lining his cheek, if he'd allow. She drew her nose and lips gently up the curving line of his ear, as he'd done for her, barely breathing in her anticipation. She wished so much she could give him words, any words, to show how much she cared. For now, touches would have to suffice.

vilkas isn't an over-thinker, he's been trained to live in the moment because in a fight that was all there was. the moment. overthinking could cost lives in a fight, as he'd once said to lily. the firebrand does not overthink this moment, either. he doesn't spend time trying to ponder it because it's a nice moment ...and to him it feels like a declaration. filling the hollow that the absence of words. he doesn't need words to let lily know how he feels about her. his attraction goes much deeper than just the shallow form of the word now. sure, it happened fast but it doesn't change the fact that he cares about her. he trusts her, he enjoys spending time with her and while he doesn't believe he loves her yet it's easy for vilkas to chart the course to believe that it'll happen.

a rumble of amusement vibrates in his chest, sounding from low in his throat as she presses her ear further against his touch. he nips lightly, not aimed to hurt, at the downy junction of where her ear meets the crown of her skull and soothes his tongue over it in the seconds following. the absence of her ear invites the feeling of her preening the fur of his cheek and her touch, from his cheek to the curving line of his ear is felt keenly, like fire that instead of burns leaves each nerve along the path tingling, alive in a very different way than pain. a rumble of pleasure comes from somewhere deep within vilkas's broad chest.

he's never felt this way before about anyone ( and it's not that he hasn't had interest ). and while he might not be in love with her yet, vilkas recognizes easily that lily has become incredibly special to him and that she makes him want to give her the world, everything and anything she wants. he recognizes that he wants to spend the rest of his life cherishing her in every way she deserves and most surprisingly, that those intense and immovable feelings don't scare him.

While Vilkas's feelings might not have been that extreme, yet, Lily knew in this moment, as she pulled back to look at the warrior, that she was madly in love with him. It felt different than what she had experienced with Dirge; that was hunger, fleeting and easily sated. This was something else entirely, all at once a cool breeze kissing her face and heat rushing through her veins, setting every nerve ablaze.

But even as she found herself lost in his gaze, filled with childlike fantasies of romance and adventure, the very adult sensation of lust held her body in a vice. It pulsed in her stomach, and lower down, and her toes curled without her willing them to do so. She whined again, but it was softer, more plaintive--a ragged sigh rather than an expression of worry.

Lily stretched her body out onto the rock, leaning slightly away from Vilkas, half on her side, her eyes meeting his in silent suggestion. Kiss me, she thought, tail sweeping the slightest bit to one side. Touch me. There was no fear, like there had been with Dirge, only joy and desire--and the small pain that she could not tell him plainly what she felt.

vilkas draws in a deep breath, drinking in her scent as it fills his black, leathery nostrils, unable to do anything more than marvel over her. how easily and quickly he'd grown attached to her. and it was her specifically. it was her that kept him in the sanctuary despite his disagreements on how it's ran, on the 'slap on the wrist' border policy alarian had going on. originally, vilkas had only meant for his stay to be temporary but he knows that so long as the sanctuary makes lily happy, so long as she wants to stay then he'll stay. he watches as she stretches out, leaning slightly away from him. his eyes trail over her body once, appreciative, before his gaze goes back to her own where he notes the suggestion there.

another low rumble vibrates it's way from his chest, up his throat and past his lips in response to her silent pleas. the raptorial firebrand was not a gentleman but he will not deny her what she wants. because she asks it of him, because he wants to. he leans closer and presses his nose against her cheek to start. he nips lightly there and soothes it with his tongue, leaving a similar path of love bites and kisses along her jaw, paying special attention to the junction where her jaw meets her throat knowing that it's a sensitive place to any living beast.

A purr-like rumble of pleasure found its way up her throat, her eyes closing and her smile growing. She let out a shuddering breath as he ran his tongue and teeth over her cheek, eyes rolling back slightly as he did the same to her throat. Her toes curled further in abandon, lust and love, fear and excitement all together rolling over her body in waves.

Her tail lifted, the tip caressing one of his hind haunches, and the fleshy part where the leg met his stomach. So muscled he was, so lean. Heavy-lidded, she opened her eyes and used them to devour his body, taking in every inch of him. She wanted each and every inch, and knew in this moment he wouldn't hesitate to give all of them to her. How could he resist?

vilkas hears the shudder in her breath, the tell-tale hitch that bespeaks pleasure. she follows up the sound with a caress of her tail against one of his hind haunches, the junction where his leg meets his stomach. the touch is barely felt — like the whisper of a butterfly's wings across a fingertip — but vilkas feels it. his nerves are keenly aware that her body is so close to his and the tease? of her tail against his leg sends a rush of heat like fire burning through the oxygen in his veins. he could burn alive from the inside out in that moment and not care. the firebrand lets out another low rumble of pleasure and of question. was she sure? there was no worry of pups coming from a coupling for it was not the season for heat cycles but still there was a distinct point of no return that they danced on the threshold of and once vilkas gave into the primal instincts within him that screamed at him to make her his there would be no backing out. he cares enough about her to want her to be sure that this ...that he was what she truly wanted.

Please, she mouthed, her lips rounding for a long moment before her tongue drew the 's' out slowly, a hiss under her breath. She felt so open, so vulnerable. Each and every muscle in her body shuddered; every sooty hair was erect, pointing at the sky, her dark form barely visible in the dim light of night.

Lily stretched her muzzle out to preen at Vilkas's chest fur, pushing her nose into the expanse of his neck and letting her tongue run extended smooth lines along his throat. She felt the blood moving fast there, his pulse quickening, and felt an answering throb that bloomed between her hind legs and extended, like ripples in a pond, out to her stomach, her heartbeat, her toes.

Like a woman drunk on sweet summer wine, she rose unsteadily to her feet, rubbing against her newfound love in a sinuous manner. Her eyes were all-consuming fire, raking over his face, his form, suffused with desire. She growled, deep at the base of her throat, and swept her tail aside, suddenly impatient. She knew now how this game was played.

it's not often that vilkas is any sort of gentleman; but the nord isn't driven by pure, raw instinct in this moment. there is emotion in play here. his and her's. lily begins to preen the fur at his chest, and presses her nose against his neck, her tongue smoothing over his throat. would it have been anyone else, the touch of their tongue ( which is too close to their teeth ) anywhere near his throat would have met with the sharp reprimand of his teeth against their flesh. the fact that vilkas allows her the trace of her tongue against his throat for the konahrik is a huge display of trust. from the outside it might not have seemed so but a warrior always protects their throat. it's intimate to him, it leaves him vulnerable to her. exposed. his blood is racing and his breath catches in his throat. vilkas rises as she does. he relishes in the lingering touch of her body against his, craving more as his eyes catch the swipe of her tail to the side. the firebrand moves in a tight semi-circle around her and pauses briefly to nip lightly at the junction of where her tail meets her back but has no real desire to tease her any longer. her growl tells him she's as impatient as he. he rises on his hind legs, being sure to distribute his mainly weight to them and draws her against him and into his embrace.

gonna gloss over this cuz i suck at wolf erotica lmao

She let out a strangled giggle as he nipped at her, then sighed deeply as she felt his weight descend upon her, adjusting her legs to better brace herself. The connection of their flesh was nothing less than heaven, and she tried to stay in the scene, to concentrate on each and every feeling that he stirred within her. She had thought her toes could curl no more, but they somehow did, digging into the stone painfully, brutally.

Please, Lily mouthed once more, though she knew he couldn't see her lips move, now. She turned her head to cast him a glance over her shoulder, eyes rolling even further back in her skull as she took a step back into him. Her breathing was ragged and uneven, and when she looked up, the stars danced and whirled before her eyes, seeming to ebb and pulse along with the rhythms of their bodies joined.